Despite the fact that Jesus’ gave His disciples authority to expel demons (see Mark 6:7), their attempt to dislodge a demon from a young boy met with total failure. The father of the demonized boy pinpointed the cause: “they did not have the power/strength” (Mark 9:18; ίσχύω). They had Jesus’ authority, but no power. They lacked the supernatural power required to expel the demo. Divine authority without power equals powerlessness; the disciples might well have used spit-wads.
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Are you lonely and miserable? Take hope. Your loneliness can be filled and your misery relieved. Consider the case of the poor widow.
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You ignored but in desperate condition? Take hope. Consider the beggar's successful case.
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Thoughtful women and men listen to the voice of conscience. The human condition is such that we repeatedly fail, make egregious mistakes, and experience lapses of judgment. To use a religious word, we sin. All our sins are committed against a just God. So, only God has a right to declare that our sins are forgiven, canceled, and wiped clean from the pages of his books. Jewish Scriptures confirms: “The LORD…God, merciful and gracious…forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin…” (Exodus 34:6-7). It is who God who is able to forgive our sins and clean our slate. So, where can we confidently turn today to obtain God’s forgiveness for our own failures? Consider the following story.
Read More“Jesus is Lord” or “Lord Jesus” are phrases all too easy for us to ignore. “Lord” seems to be the lowly pet rock or step-child of Jesus’ names, garden variety, misunderstood, or forgotten. But “Lord” is no pet rock, no step-child in Scripture. It’s the crown prince, yes, the crown jewel in Jesus’ diadem of names.
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